side project

old... mismatched... table and chairs.  refinished and placed in the breakfast nook.

{before} pealing white paint, green metal, scratched wood table top

{after} chairs & table top painted rust, table base painted bronze

settling in

we moved into our new studio space this past week and i am slowly getting settled in. we're still in The Carter Building but we moved to the second floor {14 Glenwood Ave, Suite 18-A}. its MUCH smaller than our old space {kiona says its "cozy"} i can't remember where any of my tools now reside, and when the AC is on its freezing up there! {yes, i know i spent all summer complaining about how hot it was in the old space} its always a bit of an adjustment when you move workspaces but, once i get used to the setup i think its going to be more efficient than my previous set up. i've got a window by my bench that i can open for ventilation {and people watch from, when i'm bored}, i have lots of wall space which i LOVE, more room to keep my finished work on display. i've met most of the artists on the hall and everyone is really friendly and welcoming and i get to look at {these} in the hallway everyday.  i got everything unpacked and setup with relative ease, caught up on my Etsy orders and even managed to open the studio for First Friday.  well, its off to bed, i've got an early morning tomorrow and a busy week ahead of me, preparing for the Cooke St Carnival on the 16th, finishing a custom order and restocking Stitch with new work.

its fall {sort of}

{yellow crater ring} available on etsy

fall arrived today!  well, its technically fall, with a predicted high of 92 today it doesn't really feel like it.  but its a start... right?  i absolutely adore the fall, and the fact that it follows my least favorite season {summer} always makes it even better.  i can't wait to make trips to the farmers market on those perfect crisp, cool mornings to pick out my favorite fall vegetables.  i've been collecting delicious looking squash and pumpkin recipes {like this one} over the summer in preparation.  {yum}

{enamel necklace no.1:  yellow & grey} available on etsy

{tiny owl necklace} available on etsy

{yellow & white bracelet} available from etsy

September

horray!  its almost fall {my favorite season} and my show schedule is starting to get packed.  this month has been crazy with two shows so far, another one this weekend, preparing for my studio move at the end of the month {more details to follow}, and filling an order for metamorphosis metals' new home at Foundry in Asheville, NC.

two weeks ago, i participated in the wilmington art walk, and was lucky enough to spend the rest of the weekend relaxing at the beach with the lovely and talented "Boo" Reynolds of Bijou Savvy.  it was a fun show and a great weekend, the weather couldn't have been more perfect.  i'm looking forward to next year.  and once i get beach combing finds cleaned up, i'm going to have some great new photography props and jewelry components.

this past weekend was bazaarSPARK, which is part of SPARKcon, a great local event that showcases all kinds of creativity {music, fashion, poetry, dance, craft, etc} in the Triangle area.  at the last moment the bazaar was extended for a second day and it turned out to be a really great show.  this week i'm playing catch up and preparing for Designers Downtown Market on saturday.  i plan to have jewelry as well as handmade supplies and destash there.

 last month i added a new design to the metamorphosis line, custom initial necklaces, which debuted last month at Lazy Daze and finally made it to Etsy shop today.

nc aquarium at pine knoll shores

on the way to visit some dear friends at the beach last week, i stopped to check out the remodeled aquarium at pine knoll shores.

destashing for First Friday

First Friday is tonight!  Come see me from 6-9 at our studio on Glenwood.  I will have tons of new work, destash beads, and for the first time ever, I'll be selling my handmade supplies in person.   If your in the area its the perfect chance to pick up some new jewelry making goodies and save on shipping.

its about time

after, i'm embarrassed to say it, several years of procrastination, i {Finally} got around to making a banner for my booth display!  other than one slight road bump in the form of a crooked "t", the process went smoothly and i am really happy with how it turned out.  i finished just in time for Raleigh Wide Open and even had a enough extra fabric left over to accent the new display pieces, an amazing vintage mirror and a beat up old wooden frame, that i picked up at Suzanna's Antiques (love this place, thanks Johanna and Kristen for telling me about it).  while i was at Joann's picking up the fabric for the banner i stumbled across a book i have some pieces published in on the shelves.  yay!

i also spent some time last week working on a prototype for a new bracelet design.  its a wide cuff bracelet with a lovely, organic look.  the wire i used is too thin so this one doesn't hold its shape very well, but i have some thicker gauge wire on order and hope to refine the design and incorporate it into the Metamorphosis Metals late summer/ early fall collection.